Sheerness Line
| Sheerness Line | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Type | Suburban rail, Heavy rail |
| System | National Rail |
| Status | Operational |
| Locale | Kent South East England |
| Termini | Sheerness Sittingbourne |
| Operation | |
| Owner | Network Rail |
| Operator(s) | Southeastern |
| Rolling stock | Class 466 Class 465 (Occasional) Class 375 (Occasional) |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
| Operating speed | 75 mph (121 km/h) |
The Sheerness Line connects Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent with Sittingbourne on the mainland, and with the Chatham Main Line for trains towards London Victoria, St Pancras International, Ramsgate or Dover Priory. It opened on 19 July 1860.
Contents
History
Electrification
The line was electrified by British Railways on 15 June 1959 as part of the "Kent Coast electrification" in the 1955 Modernisation Plan. In conjunction with electrification double track was introduced between the junction with the main line and near Swale Halt. In 1960 the bridge over the Swale estuary was rebuilt when a slight deviation of the line was built requiring a new platform at Swale Halt on a different alignment.
Accidents and incidents
- On 17 December 1922, the Norwegian cargo ship Gyp collided with the Kingsferry Bridge, rendering it unfit to carry rail traffic.[1] The bridge was eventually repaired, and through rail services were restored on 1 November 1923.[2]
- On 26 February 1971, a train formed of five 2HAP electric multiple units overran the buffers and demolished the station building at Sheerness-on-Sea. One person was killed and ten were injured.[3]
Train services
The connection to Sittingbourne faces away from London (Coast Bound), and most trains on the line run as shuttles between the station and Sheerness - there are, however, a few through trains which run directly between Newington station and Kemsley via a connecting loop.
Swale station was earmarked for closure, with the Strategic Rail Authority proposing either a Parliamentary train or complete closure. This plan was eventually rejected, and the station retains a regular service.
Train services on the line are operated by Southeastern. There is only a Standard Class Service on this line. The typical trains that run on the line are 2-car Class 466 Networker EMUs which replaced the old 3-car Class 508 EMUs introduced as a stop gap to replace the Mk1 Slam Door EMUs.[when?] In the case of bad winter weather or operational problems the Class 466 units can sometimes be doubled up, or a Class 465 is used instead. Over the summer holidays or during engineering works between Sittingbourne and Rainham at the weekend, Southeastern have been known to increase the capacity of one or both units by replacing them with a Class 465 Networker or a Class 375 Electrostar.
Off-peak service:
2tph |Sheerness on sea.
2tph Sittingbourne.
From the January 2015 timetable change, from Monday to Friday, Southeastern operate two direct services from Sheerness-On-Sea to London Victoria in the morning peak, formed of 6 or 8 car trains. There are also two return services from London Victoria to Sheerness On Sea in the evening peak, formed of 4 or 6 car trains. These services do not stop at Sittingbourne, but use the third side of a triangle junction (Western Junction) that links the Sheerness Line to the Chatham Mainline. These are normally operated by British Rail Class 465 and 466 Networker trains in multiple. Although trains normally use Platform 1, due to the shorter length of Platform 2, some Sittingbourne bound 2-car services use Platform 2 as some of the Victoria Services can only fit into Platform 1.
150th anniversary
During July 2010 there were events celebrating 150 years of trains to Sheppey, with a plaque on display at Queenborough Station.
Sheppey Light Railway
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There was a branch line from Queenborough to Leysdown, opened in 1901 and closed 1950 - see the Sheppey Light Railway.
References
- ↑ "King's Ferry Bridge seriously damaged" The Times (London). Monday, 18 December 1922. (43217), col A, p. 9.
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- Articles that mention track gauge 1435 mm
- Pages using BSsplit instead of BSsrws
- Pages with broken file links
- Vague or ambiguous time from July 2014
- Use dmy dates from March 2011
- Railways on English Islands
- Rail transport in Kent
- Railway lines in South East England
- Railway lines opened in 1860
- Standard gauge railways in England
- Sheerness
